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Growing up in Milwaukee's Sherman Park/Uptown neighborhood, Christopher Perceptions remembers hearing frequent gunshots and police sirens. The son of a Christian evangelist mother and a father who dealt drugs, he saw two very different futures for himself.
"I had a decision to make," Perceptions said. "I was either going to be a statistic or a pioneer, and I wanted to become a pioneer."
After learning about blockchain and cryptocurrency several years ago, Perceptions developed the belief that the technologies could empower people in marginalized communities like the one he was raised in. He began building PerceptForm, a startup that officially launched in 2020.
The company currently offers online courses about cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and has more than 600 students worldwide, according to Perceptions. On June 19 — Juneteenth— it will launch PerceptPay, a marketplace that will allow businesses to accept U.S. dollars for goods and services but receive payment in bitcoin.
PerceptForm is also partnering with The Black Wall Street app, the first Black-owned digital wallet. Co-founded by author and actor Hill Harper who's known for his roles on "The Good Doctor" and "CSI:NY," the app launched on May 31, Perceptions said. Harper is also a financial investor in PerceptForm, Perceptions said, but declined to disclose the size of the investment.
Through a partnership with New York City-based SolidBlock, a company that enables real estate tokenization through blockchain, PerceptForm aims to "democratize access" to real estate investing, allowing renters in affordable housing to become fractional owners via small investments, Perceptions said.
"Blockchain truly is an equalizing agent," Perceptions said. "It doesn’t care if you’re Black or if you’re white. All it cares about is the ones and the zeros.”
Perceptions and his family are moving to North Carolina in June, but he said the company is hiring globally and will give preference to Milwaukee-based candidates.
The technology/product: PerceptForm aims to be an end-to-end ecosystem of cryptocurrency and blockchain products and services that introduce communities to those technologies. Its products and services focus on education, finance, art and real estate, and include online courses, NFT consulting and a bitcoin payment platform.
How it makes money: PerceptForm monetizes or plans to monetize through online course sales; NFT consulting fees from artists, galleries and museums; 1% transaction fees from PerceptPay; and equity and fees from real estate deals, according to Perceptions.
Size of the market: The total addressable market is $33 billion and the serviceable available market is $4 billion, according to Perceptions.
Competition: From a software platform standpoint, competitors include PayPal, Gumroad and Udemy, Perceptions said.
Competitive advantage: Global partnerships, understanding of target demographic, ability to go to market quickly and influencer connections, Perceptions said.
Businesses it could disrupt: E-commerce, education, art, real estate.
Manager background: Christopher Perceptions has been an entrepreneur since age 18. He started college but didn't finish, opting instead to avoid student debt and focus on founding businesses, including the faith-focused clothing company ARTLife Forever. He is on the education board at the Milwaukee Art Museum and previously served on the Bronzeville Advisory Committee for the city of Milwaukee.
Capital raised: Undisclosed amount from Hill Harper, $10,000 grant from a silent investor, $5,000 Project Pitch It grant.
Capital sought: $1.3 million
Ideal exit: A multi-billion dollar acquisition or a direct public offering
AT A GLANCE
Company Name: PerceptForm
Headquarters: Incorporated in Wyoming, incubated in Milwaukee
Year founded: 2020
Employees: 1, with plans to hire 12 additional people
Website: www.perceptform.tech
